Air-heater for internal-combustion engines



B. B. BLOCK AIR HEATER FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT- 9, 1913.?

1,400,015, .Patentea iiec. 13', 1921;

'B-r M/w rm/my are; STAT-as YPA T NT BENJAMIN B. BLOCK, gOF LOS ANGELES,CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR 0F ONEfHALF:xTO MARY AVERY SCHERFEE, 0]? LOSANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

AIR-HEATER FOR INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINES.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Dec. 13, 1921,

Application filed. September 9, 1918. Serial No. 253,210.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN B. BLOCK, a citizen of the United States,residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State ofCalifornia, have invented a new and useful Air-Heater forInternal-Combustion Engines, of which the following is a specification.

The object of this invention is to provide improved means for heatingair passing to the carbureter of an internal combustion engine.

The accompanying drawings illustrate an embodiment of my invention, andreferring thereto:

Figure l is a partly sectional front elevation of the air heating means.

Fig. 2 is a section on line22 in Fig. 1.

In the drawing, a designates an internal combustion engine, having anintake pipe or manifold l and exhaust pipes 2. The carbureter b isconnected to said air intake pipe and is provided with an air inlet pipe3, which leads from a pre-heater 0. Said preheater comprises an outercasing 4, an inner casing 5 and an intermediate casing 6.

Outer casing 4 is divided by longitudinal partitions 7 into lower andupper chambers constituting first and second exhaust-receiving chambers,and the lower chamber is provided near one end with an air inlet 8, andcommunicates at its other end, through a passage 8 with the chamberabove the partitions 7, such upper chamber being in communication, atthe end remote from the passage 8', with a passage 9 leading to thechamber within inner casing 55. The exhaust pipes 2 communicate withpipes 10 leading to the lower part of casing 6 which makes a tightcontact with the inner casing 5 at each side, so as to divide the casing6 into upper and lower chambers. At one end of the intermediate casing 6a passage 11 is provided through which the exhaust gases may pass fromthe lower to the upper chamber in such casing, and the other end of theupper chamber of casing 6 is connected to a pipe 12 for carrying awaythe exhaust. With the above described construction, the exhaustreceiving passages or chambers in casing 6 are surrounded by the airheating passages or chambers in the outer casing '4 and surround the airsuperheating passage or chamber in the inner casing 5. This constructioninsures maximum efiiciency in heating as the heat from the exhaustchambers can not pass directly to the outer air, but must pass either tothe outer or to the inner air chamber, and the air after passing aroundthe exhaust chamberv and being par-' tially heated by the heat whichwould otherwise be lost by radiation from the outer walls of the exhaustchamber, then passes to the superheating chamber wherein it issurrounded by the inner walls of the exhaust chamber and is therebyraised to a higher 1 temperature than is possible in the outer chamber,which is exposed to radiation on the outer side thereof.

In the operation of the apparatus, air is drawn from air inlet 8 throughthe lower air heating chamber in casing 4, the passage 8', the upper airheating chamber in casing 4,

passage 9, inner casing 5 and pipe 3 to the" carbureter. In passingthrough the air'heating chambers in casing 4 the air is heated and it isthen superheated in passing through the inner casing 5, such heatingbeing effected by the heat of the exhaust gases passlng through thepassages in casing 6. The pre-heated air passes through the carbureter,

wherein it takes up fuel from the distributing device, the heatedcondition of the air insuring vaporization of such fuel, even when fuelof low volatility is used.

'What I claim is: I

An air pre-heater for internal combustion engines comprising an outercasing, an intermediate casing within the outer casing, partitionsbetween the outer and intermediate casings dividing the spacebetween-saidcasings into first and second air heating chambers, an lnnercasing within the intermediate casing and constituting a superheatingohamher, and dividingthe space within the intermediate chamberinto-firstand second ex H haust-receiving chambers, said first airheating chamber having an air inlet at one end and connecting at itsother end with the second air heating chamber, and said superheatingchamber having an outlet at one endand connecting. t its other end with;

the second heating chamber at the end communicating at its other endwith the thereof which is remote from its point of firstexhaust-receiving chamber. communication with the first air heating Intestimony WhereofIhave hereunto sub- 10 chamber, said firstexhaust-receiving chamscribed my name this 30th day of August, herhaving inlet means for receiving exhaust 1918.

gases and the second exhaust-receiving chamber having an outlet at oneend and BENJAMIN B. BLOCK.

